Anna Kristiansen
Anna Kristiansen D. O. B: '''June 18th, 1980 '''Gender: '''Female '''Marital Status: '''Single (Divorced.) '''Last Known Location: '''Odessa, TX '''Occupation: '''History Teacher at Union Wells High School Personality In all things, Anna is an open book. She is a warm, intelligent woman who genuinely believes in the idea of a fair and balanced world. Unlike some teachers who have simply entered into the profession because they've ran out of steam in their other careers, Anna loves teaching and considers it one of the most important social duties that a person can engage in. To that end, she adores her students (most of them, at least..) and is determined to helping them succeed in whatever way she can. Anna may at times look like a 'pretty librarian' given her love of books and history, but she certainly doesn't have the personality to match. She is instead an exuberant young woman who is rarely, if ever, afraid to speak her mind, and stands up for what she holds dear. That is not to say that she doesn't have a bit of that side to her, or might occasionally value a bit of peace and quiet, tucked away in her bed with a good book to read. Doesn't everyone need that, every now and then? Anna prides herself on being as approachable as possible. Aside from her duties as a history teacher, she is also one of the designated school counsellors and is always willing to talk to a student in need. Coming to America as a foreigner, she is somewhat uninfluenced by the cultural divides that possibility exist in Texan society, and thus openly interacts with her students regardless of colour or creed. She considers her duties as both teacher and counsellor to extend beyond school hours, and has no issues making time for people who especially need her help. If this leaves her with limited time for a social life, so be it. Truth be told, Anna has never felt overwhelmingly burdened by the need for one in the first place! Despite her head-on approach to life and her devotion to helping others, there are times when Anna feels a certain sense of vulnerability. She originally came to live in the United States to marry a young man whom she'd met during her time as an exchange student. Several years into their marriage, she learned that he had been having a string of affairs. It is perhaps a naive characteristic of her personality, but Anna tends to try and find the solution to problems within herself. She blamed herself for her divorced husband's misdeeds, and has spent the time since trying to ascertain what she did so wrong in their relationship to result in it breaking down. Since then, she has kept her distance from potential romantic interests. The divorce hurt her more than she cares to admit, and she has poured her energy since then into her other great love: teaching. History '''Family Relations: Magnus Kristiansen - father, physicist Therese Kristiansen (née Lund) - mother, historian Johan Kristiansen - older brother, physicist Else Kristiansen - daughter Other Significant People: Thomas Maxwell - ex-husband Erin Hudson - friend, colleague Story To Date: Anna was born in Oslo, Norway, on June 18th, 1980, the second and final child of Therese and Magnus Kristiansen. The Kristiansen family has always had a strong academic background, producing many an author and researcher throughout their very long history. These traditions were very much observed in the way Therse and Magnus raised their newborn daughter. Anna could not have asked for a warmer upbringing. From an early age, she was steeped in an intellectually stimulating environment, nurtured by the affection and encouragement of her parents. Although both her parents were busy academics and spent more time than they would have liked at the University of Oslo, they made sure to devote all the time they could afford to their daughter's intellectual development, even at the cost of their own social lives. Anna grew up surrounded by books. From Nordic mythological sagas to the formation of the Roman Republic, Anna always had a new book to read, and her hunger for knowledge was insatiable. Even as a very young child she demonstrated an uncanny ability to memorise dates and important names from history. That isn't to say that historical literature was the only thing she engaged in, though. Her childhood included plenty of fantasy, too, and encouraged the development of an active imagination. Nightly journeys to Middle-Earth had the young girl dreaming of towering mountains, open fields, mythical creatures and great battles scaled beyond all comprehension. She was never bored. Of course, like any other little girl she played with dolls and the like, too, but learning ''was always what she enjoyed the most. She couldn't imagine how anyone else wouldn't share her enthusiasm, either, to the point that even as a child, she was trying to educate her peers. Her childhood was rarely devoid of joy and adventure. The Kristiansen family enjoyed the benefits of Norway's rapidly growing economy and the financial freedom that it provided. Anna and her brother Johan rarely lived out their summers without a lengthy vacation in another country, often to a destination of great historical importance. Anna travelled extensively along with her family each year and picked up plenty along the way, mostly snippets of the local language, historical anecdotes and cultural traditions very different from those of her native Norway. Although her father Magnus often did his best to try and sway the young Anna's attentions away from the historical leanings of her mother, his efforts went affectionately unnoticed for the most part. Sure, science was cool, but it was all so.. modern! Everybody could see and appreciate it. The worlds of the past felt like something different and altogether exciting in Anna's mind. Trying to imagine what ancient Scandinavia might have looked like, envisioning the dragonships sailing off the coast in search of wealth and glory.. Anna couldn't imagine anything more interesting. As she grew older, the annual summer trips eventually ceased due to the increasing age of her parents. Although she felt a sadness of sorts at first, Anna couldn't stay disenchanted for long. She'd always have the happiest memories from the time they had all spent together, and perhaps that if anything only spurred her interest in history on further. Throughout high school Anna was very much a star student, and rarely struggled for long in any particular subject. Except perhaps physical education, but come on, that has nothing to do with academics. During her time in high school, Anna became particularly close to her English teacher, Sarah Nielsen. The passionate enthusiasm that Sarah showed towards her chosen subject and the concern that she showed for her students was something that Anna found herself appreciating keenly. Not all of the teachers in her school had shown the same enthusiasm, and Anna was impacted all the more by Sarah's efforts when she learned that the woman was a widow. Her ability to devote herself so fully to her occupation despite having lost someone so dear to her was inspirational for Anna, to say the least. She began to consider whether she could somehow combine her love for history with the growing admiration she had for the teaching profession. Her parents were University lecturers too, so her English teacher was far from her only push in that direction. After finishing high school, Anna was soon accepted into the University of Oslo as a History undergraduate, a three year course with the option of an additional year studying at a foreign partner University. Naturally, given her earlier love for travelling, Anna was very much interested in taking the optional year! Thus, she spent the first two years of her degree learning all sorts of interesting things about Nordic and European history, and the third year she applied to the exchange programme, which would take her to somewhere in the United States. That somewhere turned out to be the University of Texas in Austin, TX. She spent the year learning about the colonial history of America, the civil war, the struggle for equality that African-American's had faced, and more. During this time, she met a young man named Thomas Maxwell, a fellow history student and a Texas native. Anna had never really taken much interest in relationships and the like in the past. She'd have a few relationships, because what teenage girl hasn't had a few relationships, but.. nothing serious. That all changed when she met Thomas. The pair clicked on every level she could think of. He was funny and clever, and seemed every bit as fascinated by history as she was. Not to mention, he was handsome, and athletic, and.. well, he ticked just about every box for 'dream guy' that Anna could think of. Their relationship was kindled during the classes they shared, and they soon became a proper item. By the time the year was up, Thomas made Anna promise that she was going to come back when her degree was up to be his bride, a promise she was only too happy to accept. Once she graduated with the very shiniest bells and whistles attached, Anna made good on her promise. Granted a visa by the U.S immigration board, she returned to Texas and her fiance. The pair were married in a beautiful ceremony, and everything was meant to be peachy from there on out. That was the hope, anyway. When she was 24, Anna gave birth to the couple's first (and only, as it turned out) daughter, Else. Up until that point Anna had been making ends meet working in a local Starbucks as a waitress. Not the most fulfilling profession and certainly not what she'd had in mind with her History degree, but settling into a new life in the States hadn't necessarily come easy. Thomas had found a job in an office building shifting papers. It paid reasonably well, but he didn't seem particularly fulfilled, either. Anna spent much of her time raising Else and did her upmost to make sure her young daughter had the same happy upbringing that she'd experienced as a child. All the while, she grew increasingly concerned about the status of her relationship. Thomas often worked very late hours and seemed distant at times. Their life was far from the ideal marital bliss that she had dreamed it would be. Rather than find a fault in her husband, Anna preferred to think that it was just something else. A stressful job, perhaps. Or maybe she wasn't being as warm and supportive as she could be? It had to be something like that, she had thought. She was too deeply in love to think badly of him. Yet, only two years after their daughter was born, Anna came home from work one day to find Thomas in bed with another woman. She felt her heart break in two. Faced with a potential emotional breakdown, Anna moved out immediately and took Else along with her. She filed for divorce and full custody, neither of which were contested by her estranged husband. Aside from a cursory goodbye, Thomas made little further attempt to contact her after their initial breakup. Even many years since, he's shown no interest in Anna nor his daughter. With nothing really tying her to Texas following the dissolution of her relationship, Anna strongly considered leaving the United States and taking Else home, to Norway. However, an acquaintance suggested that she give Texas one last try before leaving, and recommended Odessa, where one of the local high schools, Union Wells, currently had a great need for a history teacher. The pay was much better than Starbucks and Odessa was certainly less hustle and bustle than Austin. So, Anna applied for the job, and although she faced stiff competition from a few other prospective history buffs, she was overjoyed to hear that she had received the position. She took Else and moved to Odessa, where she's been ever since. Anna has settled nicely into her home, and Else has grown to ten years of age. A precocious and intelligent child, she takes very much after her mother in all respects. Perhaps unsurprising considering the absence of her father. It hasn't always been easy being a single mother, but Anna has certainly done her best. The pair live in a modest house and get by fairly well. Anna has developed a reputation as a particularly kind teacher and has become the favourite of many a student. She does her best to bring a freshness to the learning experience in her classroom that she can't say necessarily exists in some of the other departments at Union Wells. Although she misses her homeland, she has slowly but surely fallen in love with America to the point that she can't imagine leaving it any time soon. Not to mention, Else has grown to the age where she has plenty of young friends, and her mother couldn't envision separating her daughter from the people that make her happy. They visit Norway each summer however so that Else has a chance to get acquainted with her relatives, and the native tongue. Miscellaneous '''Theme Songs:' * Good Company by Disney Trackers: * Anna's Thread Tracker Category:Original Characters (Civilians)